1. Brett Eldredge–“Lose My Mind” (up 1)
2. Luke Bryan–“Strip it Down” (up 1)
3. Kenny Chesney–“Save It For a Rainy Day” (down 2)
4. Florida Georgia Line–“Anything Goes” (up 1)
5. Chase Rice–“Gonna Wanna Tonight” (up 1)
6. Old Dominion–“Break up With Him” (up 1)
7. Cole Swindell–“Let Me See Ya Girl” (up 1)
8. Carrie Underwood–“Smoke Break” (up 1)
9. Maddie & Tae–“Fly” (up 1)
10. Dan + Shay–“Nothin’ Like You” (up 1)
11. Blake Shelton–“Gonna” (up 1)
12. Chris Young–“I’m Comin’ Over” (up 1)
13. Keith Urban–“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16” (down 9)
14. Jason Aldean–“Gonna Know We Were Here”
15. Tim McGraw–“Top of the World”
16. Cam–“Burning House”
17. Brothers Osborne–“Stay a Little Longer”
18. Big & Rich–“Run Away With You”
19. Parmalee–“Already Callin’ You Mine”
20. Kelsea Ballerini–“Dibs”
21. Jana Kramer–“I Got the Boy” (up 1)
22. LoCash–“I Love This Life” (down 1)
23. Brad Paisley–“Country Nation” (up 1)
24. Randy Houser–“We Went” (up 1)
25. Hunter Hayes–“21” (down 2)
26. Thomas Rhett–“Die a Happy Man” (up 4)
27. Sam Hunt–“Break Up in a Small Town” (down 1)
28. A Thousand Horses–(“This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial” (down 1)
29. The Band Perry–“Live Forever” (down 1)
30. Chase Bryant–“Little Bit of You” (re-entering top 30)
new #1: “Lose My Mind”
next week’s #1 prediction: “Strip it Down
Jake Owen’s “Real Life” fell from #29 to out of the top 30
Chase Bryant’s “Little Bit of You” is back in the top 30 this week
Billboard Top Country Albums
1. George Strait–Cold Beer Conversation
2. Don Henley–Cass County
3. Thomas Rhett–Tangled Up
4. Luke Bryan–Kill the Lights
5. Sam Hunt–Montevallo
6. Zac Brown Band–Jekyll + Hyde
7. Alabama–Southern Drawl
8. Brett Eldredge–Illinois
9. Eric Church–The Outsiders
10. Kane Brown–Closer (EP)
11. Maddie & Tae–Start Here
12. The Wood Brothers–Paradise [debut]
13. Little Big Town–Painkiller
14. Florida Georgia Line–Anything Goes
15. Jason Aldean–Old Boots, New Dirt
16. Alan Jackson–Angels and Alcohol
17. Brantley Gilbert–Just as I Am
18. Clint Black–On Purpose
19. Alabama–Hymns and Gospel Favorites
20. Various Artists–Now That’s What I Call Country, Volume 8
21. Chase Rice–Ignite the Night
22. Turnpike Troubadours–The Turnpike Troubadours
23. Kacey Musgraves–Pageant Material
24. Jason Isbell–Something More Than Free
25. Zac Brown Band–Greatest Hits So Far…
George Strait’s Cold Beer Conversation hits the top this weekk
Thomas Rhett’s Tangled Up has yet to get a #1 distinction
1. Kenny Chesney–“Save It for a Rainy Day” (3rd week at #1)
2. Brett Eldredge–“Lose My Mind” (up 1)
3. Luke Bryan–“Strip It Down” (up 1)
4. Keith Urban–“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16” (down 2)
5. Florida Georgia Line–“Anything Goes”
6. Chase Rice–“Gonna Wanna Tonight” (up 2)
7. Old Dominion–“Break Up With Him” (down 1)
8. Cole Swindell–“Let Me See Ya Girl” (up 2)
9. Carrie Underwood–“Smoke Break” (down 2)
10. Maddie & Tae–“Fly” (up 1)
11. Dan + Shay–“Nothin’ Like You” (up 1)
12. Blake Shelton–“Gonna” (up 1)
13. Chris Young–“I’m Comin’ Over” (up 1)
14. Jason Aldean–“Gonna Know We Were Here” (up 1)
15. Tim McGraw–“Top of the World” (up 1)
16. Cam–“Burning House” (up 1)
17. Brothers Osborne–“Stay a Little Longer” (up 2)
18. Big & Rich–“Run Away With You” (up 3)
19. Parmalee–“Already Callin’ You Mine” (up 1)
20. Kelsea Ballerini–“Dibs” (up 2)
21. LoCash–“I Love This Life” (up 2)
22. Jana Kramer–“I Got the Boy” (up 2)
23. Hunter Hayes–“21” (up 2)
24. Brad Paisley–“Country Nation” (up 2)
25. Randy Houser–“We Went” (up 3)
26. Sam Hunt–“Break up in a Small Town” (entering top 30)
27. A Thousand Horses–(“This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial” (up 3)
28. The Band Perry–“Live Forever” (down 1)
29. Jake Owen–“Real Life” (down 11)
30. Thomas Rhett–“Die a Happy Man” (entering top 30)
Kenny Chesney’s “Save It for a Rainy Day” remains at the top for a 3rd week
next week’s #1 prediction: “Lose My Mind
Sam Hunt’s horrible “Break up in a Small Town” and Thomas Rhett’s “Die a Happy Man” enter the top 30 this week
Chris Janson’s “Buy Me a Boat” fell from #9 to out of the top 30
Chase Bryant’s “Little Bit of You” fell from #29 to #31
Billboard Top Country Albums
What a victory for country music!
1. Don Henley–Cass County [debut]
2. George Strait–Cold Beer Conversation [debut]
3. Thomas Rhett–Tangled Up [debut]
4. Luke Bryan–Kill the Lights
5. Sam Hunt–Montevallo
6. Alabama–Southern Drawl
7. Brett Eldredge–Illinois
8. Zac Brown Band–Jekyll + Hyde
9. Eric Church–The Outsiders
10. Florida Georgia Line–Anything Goes
11. Little Big Town–Painkiller
12. Maddie & Tae–Start Here
13. Clint Black–On Purpose [debut]
14. Alan Jackson–Angels and Alcohol
15. Jason Aldean–Old Boots, New Dirt
16. Turnpike Troubadours–Turnpike Troubadours
17. Brantley Gilbert–Just as I Am
18. Kacey Musgraves–Pageant Material
19. Various Artists–Now That’s What I Call Country, Volume 8
20. Chase Rice–Ignite the Night
21. Chris Stapleton–Traveller
22. Kip Moore–Wild Ones
23. Willie Nelson/Merle Haggard–Django and Jimmie
24. Home Free–Country Evolution
25. Jason Isbell–Something More Than Free
Don Henley’s Cass County and George Strait’s Cold Beer Conversation each sold more than 80,000 copies, coming in at #1 and #2
Thomas Rhett’s Tangled Up missed Strait by 20,000 copies and came in at #3…this is the best sentence I have ever written on this blog
Clint Black’s On Purpose unimpressively debuts at #13
1. Kenny Chesney–“Save It for a Rainy Day” (2nd week a #1)
2. Keith Urban–“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”
3. Brett Eldredge–“Lose my Mind” (up 1)
4. Luke Bryan–“Strip It Down” (up 2)
5. Florida Georgia Line–“Anything Goes” (up 2)
6. Old Dominion–“Break Up With Him” (up 5) [tied for biggest gainer]
7. Carrie Underwood–“Smoke Break” (up 2)
8. Chase Rice–“Gonna Wanna Tonight”
9. Chris Janson–“Buy Me a Boat” (down 6)
10. Cole Swindell–“Let Me See Ya Girl” (up 2)
11. Maddie & Tae–“Fly” (down 1)
12. Dan + Shay–“Nothin’ Like You” (up 1)
13. Blake Shelton–“Gonna” (up 1)
14. Chris Young–“I’m Comin’ Over” (up 1)
15. Jason Aldean–“Gonna Know We Were Here” (up 5) [tied for biggest gainer]
16. Tim McGraw–“Top of the World” (up 2)
17. Cam–“Burning House” (up 2)
18. Jake Owen–“Real Life” (down 1)
19. Brothers Osborne–“Stay a Little Longer” (up 2)
20. Parmalee–“Already Callin’ You Mine” (up 3)
21. Big & Rich–“Run Away With You” (up 1)
22. Kelsea Ballerini–“Dibs” (up 2)
23. LoCash–“I Love This Life” (up 2)
24. Jana Kramer–“I Got the Boy” (up 2)
25. Hunter Hayes–“21” (up 2)
26. Brad Paisley–“Country Nation” (entering top 30)
27. The Band Perry–“Live Forever” (up 1)
28. Randy Houser–“We Went” (entering top 30)
29. Chase Bryant–“Little Bit of You” (up 1)
30. A Thousand Horses–(“This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial” (down 1)
Kenny Chesney’s “Save It for a Rainy Day” remains at the top for a 2nd week
next week’s #1 prediction: “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”
Thomas Rhett’s “Crash and Burn” and Lady Antebellum’s “Long Stretch of Love” fell from #5 and #16, respectively, to out of the top 30
Brad Paisley’s mediocre “Country Nation” and Randy Houser’s unoriginal “We Went” enter the top 30 this week
Billboard Top Country Albums
1. Luke Bryan–Kill the Lights
2. Alabama–Southern Drawl [debut]
3. Turnpike Troubadours–The Turnpike Troubadours [debut]
4. Home Free–Country Evolution [debut]
5. Brett Eldredge–Illinois
6. Sam Hunt–Montevallo
7. Eric Church–The Outsiders
8. Zac Brown Band–Jekyll + Hyde
9. Florida Georgia Line–Anything Goes
10. Little Big Town–Painkiller
11. Maddie & Tae–Start Here
12. Jason Aldean–Old Boots, New Dirt
13. Alan Jackson–Angels and Alcohol
14. Brantley Gilbert–Just as I Am
15. Various Artists–Now That’s What I Call Country, Volume 8
16. Kacey Musgraves–Pageant Material
17. Kip Moore–Wild Ones
18. Chris Stapleton–Traveller
19. Chase Rice–Ignite the Night
20. Zac Brown Band–Greatest Hits So Far…
21. Jason Isbell–Something More Than Free
22. Carrie Underwood–Greatest Hits: Decade #1
23. Elvis Presley–Elvis Presley Forever
24. Cole Swindell–Cole Swindell
25. Alabama–Angels Among Us: Hymns & Gospel Favorites
Luke Bryan is back on top with the unfortunate Kill the Lights
Turnpike Troubadours debut at #3 with their brilliant self-titled album…if you have not listened to and/or bought this, do it now
Alabama’s Southern Drawl debuts at #2
at least Sam Hunt was not in the top 5 for once
seriously, who is buying these Now That’s What I Call Country albums?
1. Kenny Chesney–“Save It for a Rainy Day” (up 3)
2. Keith Urban–“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”
3. Chris Janson–“Buy Me a Boat”
4. Brett Eldredge–“Lose My Mind” (up 1)
5. Thomas Rhett–“Crash and Burn” (down 4)
6. Luke Bryan–“Strip it Down” (up 2)
7. Florida Georgia Line–“Anything Goes” (up 2)
8. Chase Rice–“Gonna Wanna Tonight” (up 3)
9. Carrie Underwood–“Smoke Break” (up 5) [tied for biggest gainer]
10. Maddie & Tae–“Fly”
11. Old Dominion–“Break Up With Him” (up 1)
12. Cole Swindell–“Let Me See Ya Girl” (up 1)
13. Dan + Shay–“Nothin’ Like You” (up 2)
14. Blake Shelton–“Gonna” (up 2)
15. Chris Young–“I’m Comin’ Over” (up 5) [tied for biggest gainer]
16. Lady Antebellum–“Long Stretch of Love” (up 1)
17. Jake Owen–“Real Life” (up 1)
18. Tim McGraw–“Top of the World” (up 3)
19. Cam–“Burning House”
20. Jason Aldean–“Gonna Know We Were Here” (up 2)
21. Brothers Osborne–“Stay a Little Longer” (up 3)
22. Big & Rich–“Run Away With You” (up 1)
23. Parmalee–“Already Callin’ You Mine” (up 2)
24. Kelsea Ballerini–“Dibs” (up 2)
25. LoCash–“I Love This Life” (up 2)
26. Jana Kramer–“I Got the Boy” (up 2)
27. Hunter Hayes–“21” (up 2)
28. The Band Perry–“Live Forever” (up 2)
29. A Thousand Horses–“(This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial” (entering top 30)
30. Chase Bryant–“Little Bit of You” (entering top 30)
new #1: “Save It for a Rainy Day”
next week’s #1 prediction: “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”
Dustin Lynch’s “Hell of a Night” and Sam Hunt’s “House Party” fell from #6 and #7, respectively, to out of the top 30
A Thousand Horses and Chase Bryant enter the top 30 with the less than impressive “(This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial” and “Little Bit of You”
Billboard Top Country Albums
1. Brett Eldredge–Illinois [debut]
2. Luke Bryan–Kill the Lights
3. Sam Hunt–Montevallo
4. Zac Brown Band–Jekyll + Hyde
5. Eric Church–The Outsiders
6. Florida Georgia Line–Anything Goes
7. Maddie & Tae–Start Here
8. Little Big Town–Painkiller
9. Alan Jackson–Angels and Alcohol
10. Jason Aldean–Old Boots, New Dirt
11. Brantley Gilbert–Just as I Am
12. Kip Moore–Wild Ones
13. Kacey Musgraves–Pageant Material
14. Chris Stapleton–Traveller
15. Various Artists–Now That’s What I Call Country, Volume 8
16. Elvis Presley–Elvis Presley Forever
17. Zac Brown Band–Greatest Hits So Far…
18. Jason Isbell–Something More Than Free
19. Chase Rice–Ignite the Night
20. Kelsea Ballerini–The First Time
21. Willie Nelson/Merle Haggard–Django and Jimmie
22. Cole Swindell–Cole Swindell
23. Carrie Underwood–Greatest Hits: Decade #1
24. Darius Rucker–Southern Style
25. Various Artists–Mud Digger, Volume 6
Brett Eldredge’s mediocre r&b-influenced Illinois finally replaces Luke Bryan’s horrifying album at the top, and for that, I have to thank Brett
look at the staying power of Jason Isbell, Chris Stapleton, and Willie and Merle, enough said
2015 has been the year of the sellout in country music. The two most disappointing sellouts of the year for me were easily the Zac Brown Band and the Eli Young Band, the former with the release of the EDM single “Beautiful Drug” to country radio, and the latter with the terrible single “Turn it On” and the subsequent EP, as well as the horrible “country remix” of “Honey, I’m Good” with Andy Grammer. Keith Urban was a close third, using his talent to give us the brilliant “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16,” a song that personally pisses me off about as much as “Kick the Dust Up” because Keith Urban knows better. Easton Corbin used his George Strait-esque voice, previously used for “A Little More Country Than That,” to record an album full of bro country pickup lines. Brett Eldredge, though never really carrying a torch for traditional country, was never really working aginst us until his recent r&b album Illinois. Danielle Bradbery has remade herself into a wannabe pop star for the sake of reviving an already struggling career. Even the legendary Alabama sunk to the low of releasing “Southern Drawl,” a desperate attempt to be cool that failed in every respect, coolness especially. And now, Eric Paslay’s new single, “High Class” seems to have finally pushed everyone off the deep end with its blatant metro-bro bullshit lyrics and style–and this coming from the person who obviously knows better, as “She Don’t Love You” so effectively proved. In times like these, people start saying we should forsake country altogether and start calling ourselves Americana fans, that we should just surrender our beloved “country music” to these sellouts, country carpetbaggers, and metro-bro douchebags, and go listen to Americana. They say that all hope for “country” as we knew it is lost.
Well, here are some signs of hope, in no particular order of importance.
Dierks Bentley
Dierks Bentley is not selling out, as his latest single, “Riser,” has proven. I will be incredibly shocked if he succumbs to the trends, as he has no reason to. He has found the perfect balance between quality and airplay and doesn’t seem to care that he often does not get the recognition he deserves. He has made quality music throughout his career and has no reason to change that now; he’s found a formula that works for him even in this country radio climate.
Carrie Underwood
Carrie Underwood is not a traditional country artist, but she’s here because she defines what actual pop country should sound like. She takes the best of pop and country and blends them well, offering songs that both display depth in storytelling and are radio-ready. Although I was not as impressed with her new single, “Smoke Break,” as many, it certainly does not follow the current trends, and her new album, Storyteller, could be a factor in turning back the tide of mainstream country music to a real pop-country sound–what we have now is straight pop poorly disguised and incorrectly labled as country.
Cam
True, Cam has only given us two singles and an EP so far, but the reason she’s in my top five signs of hope for mainstream country is that On the Verge supported her. Her first single, “My Mistake,” was a nice pop country blend, but “Burning House,” the sponsored single, is a completely acoustic, traditional country song. The fact that this program supported an artist like that signals change. Cam’s debut album cannot come soon enough!
Chris Stapleton
Some would argue whether Chris Stapleton is mainstream, but I don’t see why. He’s on a major label and has even received some airplay. Traveller is nominated for Album of the Year by the CMA, and Stapleton is nominated for Male Vocalist of the Year and New Artist of the Year. Stapleton with three nominations is a sure sign of hope.
Maddie & Tae
I have written a lot about these ladies, but I’ll say it again–they can bring those that think “country” = Sam Hunt and Kelsea Ballerini back to country. Radio has actually given them a shot. They’ve proven they’re not afraid of fighting for country; they’ve spoken out against drum machines and their debut single was “Girl in a Country Song.” The fact that Scott Borchetta and Big Machine are behind them and that they’re actually getting played is a huge sign of hope.
Despite all the selling out, there are still a lot of reasons to hope for mainstream country, perhaps now more than ever. More and more independent artists are seeing success in album sales that mainstream Nashville can’t ignore. Country legend Merle Haggard, a name-drop in many of today’s songs, is openly speaking out. Represented above are established artists and newcomers alike, fighting for real country music. I didn’t even mention Mo Pitney, Ashley Monroe, Kacey Musgraves, Jon Pardi–the list goes on. Not to mention Tim McGraw’s new album will unashamedly be titled Damn Country Music. I wasn’t thrilled by the lead single, but the album title certainly intrigues me. The point of all this is that mainstream country is far from hopeless–in fact, after years of fighting, we are finally seeing numbers on our side, artists speaking out, and more traditional artists being signed and getting airplay. In short, although it is happening slowly, we are seeing results. Why should we give up now? The day we leave our own fight and run to Americana is the day that country music will be lost.
Tomato of the Week: Jamie Lin Wilson
I featured her friend and fellow Texas country artist, Courtney Patton, last week, so this week, I am covering Jamie Lin Wilson. Check out her full article on Female Friday!
Random Country Suggestion: Randy Rogers Band–Burning the Day
A great album from one of my favorite Texas/Red Dirt bands.